What an amazing day, first I saw the most incredible Red Lotus Lake this morning. This afternoon I decided to check out Sala Kaeo Kou Park. It is on the outskirts of Nong Khai and it is essentially a park
featuring many (some very large) statues of Buddha and characters from Buddhist beliefs.The creator of the Buddha Park is Luang Soulilat Bounlua Pou, a shaman who claimed to have been a disciple of the Hindu holy man in
Viet Nam and integrated Hinduism with Buddhism. He began his return to Laos Sculpture Park in 1958. After the revolution in 1975, Bounlua Soulilat forced into exile across the River to Nong Khai in Thailand, where he built this more elaborate version of his vision Sala Kaeo Kou. Since his exile, the Socialist Government of Laos has operated the Buddha Park as a tourist attraction and a public park. There are statues of the Buddha, Hindu Lore characters, gods, animals and even Demons. It is located along the banks of the Mekong
River. I wasn't expecting too much but it is incredible, some of the most bizarre statues I have ever seen, and the fact that the park is here in Nong Khai. This place has to be seen to be believed. A monk on a mission apparently built this back in
the 1970s and 80s and seems to have thrown in everything from Buddhism to Hinduism with some very abstract pieces also. You walk through a giant mouth to enter the main part of the park. A lot of time I was reminded of the White Temple in Chiang Rai. I will
definitly visit the one in Vientiane also.